StarboardMs 2020 JLUR StingYay Build Thread

[Starboard M]

Most of you wont care, but Im going to keep going into terrible detail so I can show my terrible plan, that will hopefully pan out into something not terrible.

This is the stock, drivers side frame rail. You can see the bumper bracket held on with that bolt, and the sway bar skid below. On the top left, you can also see the pass side.

These bolts are actual tied into that bracket with nutserts and not to the frame.

Here is a top view, again, drivers side. But you can see that bolt is actually tied into that bracket with (an admittedly solid) nutsert. Frame bracket is on the ground.

So what I did is basically cut EVERYTHING off, and did some Bluetooth swaybar.

OK, maybe floating, half connected swaybar. I used some angle iron (actually sectioned square tube) to tie everything back together. And just look how much cleaner that frame rail is. Also note that sticker residue on by the front bracket.....

Welp, turns out my Jeep had a sticker, over a sticker, that was painted over leaving bare metal behind. Brilliant Jeep. Just brilliant. Im hoping thats a frame part number, and not my VIN.

This will surprise you since you only see my Jeep outside, but I do have a garage. In my measuring, I always assumed it was too tall for my terribly small garage doors. Turns out, it will fit. I had to pull it in due to welding in the wind. Not a fun fit, but doable if I need I suppose.

One final piece on this bit, I used a long piece of all thread to make sure the sleeves I installed where sort of aligned with each other. Its close enough.

Sponsored

 

[Starboard M]

Now we are finally back up to date. Ive been rolling around with no winch and a stock bumper held on by a couple bolts by more than I care to admit. Actually, you can see in several posts above. Yes, I was that guy.

Im now in crunch time, I need to get these things done. This may not be the best, but it should do for now.

This will be a two piece bumper, meaning the winch plate is separate from the bumper shell. This is helpful in both time and material, I just used the JCR winch plate I already had and modified it slightly.

In previous pictures, and possibly your own install, you might know that most winch plates, and bumpers also tie into the sway bar skid plate bracket thing. Since mine is gone, I made some new brackets that tie into that sleeve I installed.
Using the latest CAD software I cut out a bracket. I saw a post somewhere that someone had used magnets to hold the paper template to the metal, and had one of those "duh" moments. This is actually an switched magnet I use as a ground for my welder on odd things. But, its switched, so I can turn it on or off. I dont know, small tip!

The JCR winch plate is 3/16" as best I can tell, so Im using the same on the tabs. I am using some weld washers for the bolt holes to be extra fancy.

And welded. I am using a TIG, and I am still learning. Its not at all like MIG which I am "good" at. With lots of weld and multiple design elements that I hope to lessen the weld issue, I feel confident my welds should hold.

I am doing a copy of the EVO, Hepta MFG, Next Venture and coutless other bumpers. And I use "copy" loosely, more of a directional guide.

This will be a plate style bumper, I sadly dont have CNC plasma or press brake capabilities, so work with me a little!

Front skin, this will be mostly 1/8" steel, laminated in key (OK, the entire bumper) spots. The thinner metal is easier to cut, weld and drill, and I can do a little bit of deign work I cant do otherwise (see above with no CNC press brake abilities).

Here is the winch plate and winch mocked up to make sure it all fits and looks ok.

This was last night, but I made some notes and ideas on the bumper to see what I liked. The handwriting is of a child, yes, its mine.

Realized none of that made sense, so brake cleaner and a rag, and we have v1.2.

At this point it was too late to do any more cutting, so a list was done for order of operations today. Again, please dont hate the handwriting.

Im still learning TIG, but these seem to be good to me. These welds will be covered up in the next picture, so obviously they look good.

This is the end of today, trying to space the welding around so nothing warps too bad (famous last words). The weld you see above is top now covered by angle.

And here is where I left off for the day. I am pretty good at visualizing things, but a physical copy always helps. Here you can see where I made a design change and it fubared the angles. Bonus points if you can figure out what the adult beverage box came from for a template.

The ~30* angle below the hammer should be parallel with each other, made a goof.

This is actually, finally, an up to date build. I hope to get a lot of the bumper welded out at lunch tomorrow, and possibly "done" by tomorrow night.

Now I only have to do sliders, skids, pack, drive, and ummm......

 

[rohdawg]

You’ll get it done!

 

[Starboard M]

Alight boys and girls. After a long time, I finally got motivated to come back and share what little work I have done in the last couple months.

You last left off where I was in a rush to get my Wrangler done for a Rubicon trip that I had planned for 6+ months. As always, I bit off more than I could chew, and of course I was not able to get everything done in time. The two weeks prior to my trip it was incredibly hot here in WA, while it wasnt anything terrible, the PNW is not setup for temps that high, and I basically baked myself for those two weeks.

This is about noon, driveway was 139* F

The Jeep itself was 141*, and in the shade it was 100*

Long story short, I gave myself heat exhaustion and couldnt finish the Jeep in time.

I had already booked the PTO time, and for some reason airline flights a day prior to leaving were "cheap" and I decided to go on the trip in my dads Cherokee. We stuffed three people and gear into that XJ and had a blast.

Tried Soup Bowl, came super close to making it!

Ironically I only have a couple pictures of the trip, but it was a blast. Got to see a ton of old friends, and meet some new ones as well. It was a bummer the Wrangler wasnt there, but such is life.

 

[Starboard M]

Awhile ago I had removed the Rubicon electronic sway bar disco, and replaced it with Metalcloak quick discos. Since then I had not had a chance to check flex and make sure my bumpstops were working. While I was suffering from dehydration I decided to check clearances to at least get out of the sun. And yes, this is my driveway.

And, at full droop the shock body lightly hits the frame. Metalcloak makes a bracket that moves the lower mount out, and actually rotates the shock pivot 90* which I think will work better than stock. While I am not a huge fan of bolting on brackets, its a shock, so not that big a deal if it does come loose.

 

[Starboard M]

Since coming back from the Rubicon I didnt touch anything on the Jeep or garage. After trips I usually get a surge of motivation, and that just didnt happen. I also managed to throw out my back and catch Covid within days of eachother, so that was fun.

That changed this past weekend, and I finally finished up my front bumper. I built it with almost zero clearance around vital parts, so that made it difficult to bolt on.

It comprised of two parts, a winch tray that is a modified JCR winch plate used for stock bumpers, and the "outer shell" that is plate. Its all 1/8" material, some plate, some angle and some flat stock. Vial spots like the tow hook locations, bottom edge and sides are laminated for a 1/4" thickness.

The intent was to cut as much weight while being strong. Its pretty light, we will see if its strong enough.

The tow hooks are from EVO, and I think I got the pair that was cut out on a Friday afternoon as the laser was being turned off. Cut quality is, eh. But, its a Jeep, and they are beefy as heck, so who cares.

And thats where we end the update. Not exactly the update I was hoping to give, especially this long after the last post.

In the next month I hope to get some rock sliders built and installed, plus some mods as I start to move into the next phase of my build. OK, maybe two months.

 

[EcoRubicon]

Any updates? Love the build and detail in the posts

 

[Starboard M]

Its been awhile, combination of budget, waiting on parts, lack of motivation and crappy weather have prevented me from doing much else on the Jeep.

As I am working on getting to "Stage II" of my build, I find it hilarious that I have not done much offroading. But, dont mind that fact. Focus on, well, anything but my terrible photography skills.

Around Thanksgiving I added a RockJock rear anti sway bar. This moves the sway bar into a rear crossmember and off the rear framerails, which allows for extra stuff in the truck (read, gas tank)

While it seemed like a simple install, getting the delrin spacer things into the frame crossmember proved to be more work than I expected. Toasted my poor Dremel before I broke out the air grinder. You have to bevel the frame crossmember before you whack those spacers in, and my crossmember was not welded all that well.

Pass side took a TON of grinding, driver side took maybe a minute. If you do install these, dont be afraid to bevel the crossmember more than you think you should (being careful to not take too much...).

The links tieing the swaybar to the axle are left and right hand thread. The left hand nut is marked as such, a small detail that I really like.

Here is the Currie (left) to stock (right). Not much difference in thickness, which actually surprised me.

Another minor detail that I really liked is the small shoulder on the TREs so anything in the mounting hole is full shank and not threaded. Silly, I know, but it shows thought in the product development. (shown here below the "nut" portion)

And installed. Passenger side took an hour, drivers side took 15 minutes. Yes, you will have to take off both tires, I hoped I would only have to do one.

Of note:
-Easy install all things considered, but I have air tools and a DGAF attitude. If you do this install just know you will need more than a small file to get those delrin spacers in.
-There are two holes on the sway bar links, I am using the furthest out, which is the least sway control. I noticed the difference right away, my wife has not noticed at all. Its also a lifted Jeep on 37s and an admittedly soft suspension. Take what you will from those observations.
-Soooooo much room for activities now!

 

[Starboard M]

Next on the big update list was the addition of two Hella 500s, which I have had on 4ish Jeeps. They were the bees knees back in the day, but any Amazon special LED light blows them away in light output. I threw some Hella branded covers (stickers) on them, and have found they work pretty good as basic fog lights.

And that really ends the updates Ive had for the last couple months/weeks. Black Friday sales were amazing this year and I will be picking up some parts in the next couple weeks to then slowly install.

For now I will leave this update with this final picture, with more to come hopefully later this weekend.

 

[Starboard M]

Its been a minute or two since the last update, and honestly not much has been going on.

First off, the weather has been bad. Well, no it hasnt. Its been a surprisingly dry winter, at least for the PNW. Well, no it hasnt. Kinda? I dont know, Im not a doctor.

It has snowed a time or two. Speaking of which, when Im not playing an engineer on the interwebs my wife makes me do this kinda thing. And she says my hobbies are expensive....

Anyway. Jeep things.

Awhile ago I had installed a GMRS radio in my Jeep, and we can use that term loosely. In reality, I stuffed the radio body between the seat and the center console. While it worked, it was not what I wanted long term.

CMM Offroad now offers a universal mount that uses the front center console mounting bolts. I bought one during one of their sales. It shipped quick, and they were kind enough to explain Im an idiot without saying that directly. Link to mount.

The before, expertly installed Midland radio. Yes, my interior is gross. Yes, Ive kinda cleaned it up a bit.

Mount installed. All you have to do is drill out the Midland mount holes and mount it directly to the CMM bracket. For some reason I was thinking I would have to make a separate bracket to adapt one bracket to another.

And "final" install. The wiring still bugs me, but for now it works. I may end up 3D printing some sort of cover to hide or route the cables a little better, and also maybe vacuum the interior out.

Next up is the big boy, or part of it. Black Friday was bad for my credit card. Motobilt had a sale which I just had to take part in. I ended up getting their belly pan/4 link setup PLUS the gas tank and skid plate. You cannot do the belly pan without the gas tank, and for some reason I really dislike saddle tanks.

As teased in the prior post, its a pretty insane setup.

 

[Starboard M]

This stage of the build is going to be a little more intense than everything else I have done to this point on this Jeep.

My plan:
-Install belly pan and engine skid
-Install gas tank
-Make/buy rock sliders

Next year I will start working on the 4 links. You can use the belly pan without touching the suspension as best I can tell, so this will get me on the trail without going crazy.

In my mind, this makes sense. Now buying this kit and NOT using it to its full potential is dumb, but Im telling myself its future proofing my build. Why buy a $2,000 Artec skid pan only to out grow it in a year or two?




Im fortunate enough to have a three car garage, but its a terrible '90s three car garage where everyone drove small econo cars and didnt have so many hobbies. Its low, minimal storage space, and not meant for a lifted Jeep.

I also have a project Comanche in the garage, a project motorcycle and a ton of tools, camping gear and, well, crap.

Step one of this whole stage was to actually get the garage clean, or at least clean enough to move the Comanche out of the center bay where its lived for two years so I can get another vehicle into the garage.

This space was promised to my wife for her car, but.....

Its a tight fit and I will most likely never park in the garage unless I am doing work to the Jeep.

Here is the full Motobilt belly pan laid out. Or I should say, everything BUT the belly pan. Thats in the back of the Comanche, weighs a ton and I didnt want to move it.

First task is to mount the front crossmember and ignoring the instructions, to mount the engine skid.

Stock stuff thats going to disappear.

Front Xmember stock compared to new.
Note that the stock one is aluminum, I have not seen that mentioned before, so I was a little surprised how light it was. Also, I am not going to be welding on the drivers side lower link mount at this time (more on that later).

There is an exhaust hanger that bolts to the stock member. I got myself a new tool I didnt know existed, its a exhaust hanger removal wrench (link) and wow does it work. I am most likely behind the times, but Ive struggled with the JL hangers enough the $20 was worth it!

Now let me paint a picture for you guys.
This was all done last weekend. My plan was to get the front X member and engine skid plate installed. This weekend I was going to do the gas tank relocation as that seemed more intense.

Well, as it turns out, you cannot use the Motobilt system with the stock exhaust.

Front, drivers side lower control arm mount hits (on the 3.6) right where the "header collector" is:

And.... The passenger side header pipe that runs under the engine hits the engine belly pan.

This was not originally stated on their product page, I emailed them and they have since updated the page to reflect this pretty major issue.

I ended the weekend doing an oil and filter change at 13,300 miles to also install the Fumoto oil drain ball valve. My hope is this will aid in oil changes in the future due to the skid plates.

Last weekend was fun, frustrating and fun.
The exhaust issue certainly isnt a deal breaker as I knew I would at least be modifying the rear section of the exhaust due to the gas tank relocation.
The lack of the LCA mount again, wouldnt be a big deal as I will be doing the 4 link portion at a later date but it would have been nice to get it at least welded in before it gets muddy and gross.
However, moving the pass side exhaust sucks, so we will cross that bridge later!
For now I am happy to be done spray painting everything and am moving onto the gas tank relocation done.

 

[Starboard M]

And we are back to current. This week and weekend the task is to get the gas tank moved to the back where god intended it to be.

This seems to be not only a relatively new product, but there are also very few write ups or instructions past what Motobilt provides.

Here is a pretty good video showing almost everything:


For this you need a couple things:
-REAR FUEL TANK & SKID FOR JEEP JL
SKU : MB5026-MB5033
-REAR MOUNT FUEL CELL ACCESS HATCH FOR JEEP JL
SKU : MB5027
-JL EVAP AND FUEL LINE MODIFICATION FOR REAR TANK
SKU : MB5033

I ended up also buying a new fuel pump in hopes I wouldnt have to open up the stock tank. We'll see if that ends up being worth it.


Last night I got the rear storage bin taken out. Gentleman in the video above struggled with that bit quite a bit, but I cracked the code!

Stock, I have a AEV jack raiser, Jeep factory recovery bag and a couple small tools and supplies.

The lid is a simple removal, pull towards the back and lift right off. Next we take the side pieces off, which are bolted down with the six D rings. The covers pop up and expose a torx bolt. You can do them with your fingers. The back four hinge on the front, the front two hinge on the back (they are all the same, the front two are just backwards).

After you remove the four 10mm bolts that hold the bin down you get to break the seam sealer Jeep uses as well. The weather was "warm" and I saw another youtube video showing these suckers. $20 at Home Depot to be used on an oscillating tool, I ended up using the "flexible scraping" blade.

The sides were harder just to avoid hitting the plastic interior bits.

I used the oscillating tool, a home trim removal tool, and a small pry bar. Took about an hour, and I got the tray/bin out in one piece and didnt damage the bodywork at all.

Fully removed:

The hardest part was the top corners, you can see the bolt holes and the seam sealer goes WAY behind those and is hard to get at with the oscillating tool.

On a factory JL the exhaust muffler sits under this cubby, and there is a heat shield to protect everything. I had removed the muffler previously so all that was left was the heat shield.
Fun/interesting fact, the nuts holding these on were an 11mm, cant say I have ever really used an 11mm on a project?

While I guess you can fab something like this yourself I did end up buying the Motobilt cover for this hole. Mocked up, I will weld and paint this tomorrow or this weekend. Im torn on if I will be welding or bolting the cover to the body.

And this is the final step, of that step, of the multi step process. Ive put everything "back together" so I can get back and forth to work. Which leaves a nice big hole in the floor.

This weekend I hope to get a fuel tank in that hole!

 

[Starboard M]

This past weekend was unfortunately a pretty big bust. The goal was to get the new gas tank and the Jeep driving again, or at least able to get me to work today.

Unfortunately Motobilt shipped me the wrong fuel pump rods, so I was pretty much stopped right away. I of course found this error Saturday morning at 8am. They are overnighting me the correct rods, but to say I was pissed was an understatement.






I was able to do some more prep work to get everything together though.

First up was the removal of the stock fuel rods. The video I posted previously also goes through this, and in fact references this video, but here is the JK version of the same process. When they say you feel like you are breaking something, they are not wrong.



This is how I managed to get it done. Rested on a hard surface, pair of vice grips and whack vice grips with a hammer.

Here you can see the stock rod (left) compared to the JK rods Motobilt shipped in error. As soon as I noticed the lack of a "barb" at the top a quick glance at their instructions showed they were close, but clearly the JK version.

Once I cooled off, figured out what was happening and sent off my email asking for the correct parts I went back out to the garage to keep working. All the motivation I had was pretty well gone at this point, but what can you do?

I had a Synergy frame side track bar bracket installed, which unfortunately interferes with the gas tank skid, so off it came. You can also see my TERRIBLE install of the stock trailer plug harness which I was using to power the reverse lights in the bumper.

Of course, the swaybar was in the way of one of the bolts, so the wheel comes off, and Jeep flexed a bit to get access. You can see the bolt just above the sway bar arm.

Then came the realization that the Synergy brace used a new track bar bolt, so a dash to my spare parts bin made me glad I actually labeled some of the bolts Ive taken off. I need to do this way more often, but I wont.

And everything taken off and ready for a gas tank.

Now heres another issue I have with Motobilt. And Im sorry if Im calling them out so much, but they are so close to being perfect, its frustrating to see these small things that I dont like. Yes, the world does in fact revolve around me.

I have the Motobilt rear bumper. In order to install the Motobilt gas tank, you have to cut some of their bumper. Why not design the bumper to accept the tank? Its two small notches that the laser cutter can easily do.

Right above the "P" Ive written in the dirt, you can see what I now realize is a nutsert. Thats where the rear of the gas tank bolts in, so you have to cut the bumper round that. Again, not a huge issue, but one that is annoying given you would kind of expect products from one company to play nicely together.

Thats where I ended the weekend.

Today I got the rear bumper off and confirmed that my frame does actually have the nutserts I need already installed.

As an FYI, this install requires an M10 nutsert. I bought this Hazard Freight install tool, only to realize it did not have an M10 arbor. So, Amazon to the rescue.
https://www.harborfreight.com/10-in-professional-rivet-nut-setter-kit-58078.html


Final thing I did today was to pull out my stock exhaust from the attic. I *think* it will work for the time being to get the rear Xmember and belly pan installed. Stock is a ~2.5" OD pipe, I think with a couple cuts and a turn down I can get it to work.

Maybe this weekend Ill get the tank installed!

 

[jhackathorne]

This past weekend was unfortunately a pretty big bust. The goal was to get the new gas tank and the Jeep driving again, or at least able to get me to work today.

Unfortunately Motobilt shipped me the wrong fuel pump rods, so I was pretty much stopped right away. I of course found this error Saturday morning at 8am. They are overnighting me the correct rods, but to say I was pissed was an understatement.






I was able to do some more prep work to get everything together though.

First up was the removal of the stock fuel rods. The video I posted previously also goes through this, and in fact references this video, but here is the JK version of the same process. When they say you feel like you are breaking something, they are not wrong.



This is how I managed to get it done. Rested on a hard surface, pair of vice grips and whack vice grips with a hammer.

Here you can see the stock rod (left) compared to the JK rods Motobilt shipped in error. As soon as I noticed the lack of a "barb" at the top a quick glance at their instructions showed they were close, but clearly the JK version.

Once I cooled off, figured out what was happening and sent off my email asking for the correct parts I went back out to the garage to keep working. All the motivation I had was pretty well gone at this point, but what can you do?

I had a Synergy frame side track bar bracket installed, which unfortunately interferes with the gas tank skid, so off it came. You can also see my TERRIBLE install of the stock trailer plug harness which I was using to power the reverse lights in the bumper.

Of course, the swaybar was in the way of one of the bolts, so the wheel comes off, and Jeep flexed a bit to get access. You can see the bolt just above the sway bar arm.

Then came the realization that the Synergy brace used a new track bar bolt, so a dash to my spare parts bin made me glad I actually labeled some of the bolts Ive taken off. I need to do this way more often, but I wont.

And everything taken off and ready for a gas tank.

Now heres another issue I have with Motobilt. And Im sorry if Im calling them out so much, but they are so close to being perfect, its frustrating to see these small things that I dont like. Yes, the world does in fact revolve around me.

I have the Motobilt rear bumper. In order to install the Motobilt gas tank, you have to cut some of their bumper. Why not design the bumper to accept the tank? Its two small notches that the laser cutter can easily do.

Right above the "P" Ive written in the dirt, you can see what I now realize is a nutsert. Thats where the rear of the gas tank bolts in, so you have to cut the bumper round that. Again, not a huge issue, but one that is annoying given you would kind of expect products from one company to play nicely together.

Thats where I ended the weekend.

Today I got the rear bumper off and confirmed that my frame does actually have the nutserts I need already installed.

As an FYI, this install requires an M10 nutsert. I bought this Hazard Freight install tool, only to realize it did not have an M10 arbor. So, Amazon to the rescue.
https://www.harborfreight.com/10-in-professional-rivet-nut-setter-kit-58078.html


Final thing I did today was to pull out my stock exhaust from the attic. I *think* it will work for the time being to get the rear Xmember and belly pan installed. Stock is a ~2.5" OD pipe, I think with a couple cuts and a turn down I can get it to work.

Maybe this weekend Ill get the tank installed!

Nice work! I can only imagine I'd be pretty mad about the incorrect part as well. And good thinking on labeling the bolts you took off. I have a bin full of them and wish I had done the same thing!

 

[Starboard M]

Nice work! I can only imagine I'd be pretty mad about the incorrect part as well. And good thinking on labeling the bolts you took off. I have a bin full of them and wish I had done the same thing!

You take off a bolt here and there, and you think, ahhh, Ill remember where that goes. Then a week goes by, and hmmm, whats this bolt go to?

This is my remainder to myself to label bolts....


Today was a bit of a slow day, met my parents for brunch and then came home to work on the Jeep.

Motobilt overnighted the correct fuel rods to me, so that was nice. While it didnt help last weekend, it was great to see them quickly fix the error with no fuss or trouble.

JK rods..........JL rods......... stock JL rods

This last week I got the tank into the skid and everything I could bolt on, installed. Make sure to get that gasket for the pump installed (green oring)! And yes, I did put a sticker on the tank. You will never see it, but when I pull this tank in 30 years, it will remind me where I got it.

The instructions are clear, simple and easy to follow, but lack in a bit of detail. I put the rods into the pump "lid" only to realize I couldnt get them into the pump body. So for anyone doing this, put the assembled rods into the pump body, then press the lid/cap on.

Also, the rods are only captured on one side, the second side goes into the " * " looking hole on the left. Make sure the orientation is correct based on the instructions. There are several other holes around the pump body that you dont use. Im guessing this pump is used on multiple Mopar tanks, hence the "modular" build.

Next, you have to pull the wiring out of this clip to it reaches the top. Pry it up, and pull it out.

Once everything is clipped back in, throw it into the tank. The pump sits on the bottom of the tank, so you do end up pushing the "lid" down about a half inch. The springs you installed hold it against the bottom, by design.

Finally, bolt everything up, and remember to align the fuel pump fittings correctly. In this case, they point towards the fill opening. Left side of this picture, but drivers side of the Jeep (picture below).

Also hard to tell in this below picture, but Motobilt has the washer count backwards (IMO).
They send:
8 flat washers
10 split ring washers.

The fuel pump uses 8 of each to bolt it down.
You use two flat washers for the fuel rods.

So by that math, you need 10 flat and 8 split.

I have two leftover split washers and had to find two extra flat washers myself because they send two of the wrong washer. Again, I will email them about this detail which I think is comical at this point. Unless I am totally installing this wrong, which could be the case.

So assembly done, lets get this into the Jeep.

And actually, it went really easy. I had to do a little pep talk as I was scared how awkward and heavy the tank and skid were going to be. But a floor jack and about a minute was all it took.

The tank and skid are held up with the four (two on each side) factory sway bar mounts and two bolts into the rear bumper x member. Six total bolts. Seems solid, I may modify later as I totally fubared my XJ gas tanks in the past.

More in the next post.

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